A petition of 700 signatures opposing cuts to council tax benefit collected from across Brighton and Hove was presented to Brighton and Hove council yesterday.
The Socialist Party organised a lobby outside the council building to show opposition to this cut and to all cuts.
The money that pays for council tax benefits is being cut by the government next April. In August it was reported that an 81 year old woman from Hove was jailed for 10 days for not paying her council tax, and last year 40 bailiff visits took place per day across Brighton and Hove.
It is estimated that up to half the revenue raised by cutting the benefit will be spent on enforcement!
Without a campaign against the cut in the budget and for a budget that reflects the needs of the city (not the cuts of the government), the Green Party councillors will find themselves the reluctant administrators of the cuts.
In his speech to the council, Socialist Party member Paul Moorhouse made it clear that councillors can choose to stand up to this government and wage a campaign for the return of central government funding.
There is no magic button that councillors can press, but they are in a position to help build movements which can shake the government.
